Our Mission

The University of Mary Washington is one of Virginia’s outstanding public liberal arts universities, providing a superior education that inspires and enables our students to make positive changes in the world. We are…

Rigorous

We are a place where faculty, students, and staff share in the creation and fearless exploration of knowledge through freedom of inquiry, personal responsibility, and service. We regard the provision of rigorous, high-quality instruction as a privilege and our most important function.

Through a professionally-engaged faculty, we support ongoing research appropriate to the development of student abilities and faculty interests. We especially champion the participation of undergraduates in research.

Passionate

Our size, enthusiastic and dedicated faculty, and historical commitment to fine teaching foster a culture where both undergraduate and graduate students benefit from genuine relationships with their faculty and multiple opportunities for active learning.

Community-oriented

We are the heart for engagement among vibrant, diverse communities and we are dedicated to supporting professional advancement and economic development and to improving the regional quality of life.

We fulfill our mission by fostering students’ intellectual and creative independence, facilitating their immersion in local, regional, national, and international communities, and by instilling the values of honor and integrity. Our graduates are models of adaptive learning, personal achievement, responsible leadership, caring service to others, and engaged citizenship in a global and diverse society.